Lord Pavisfacio

Appearance
Lord Pavisfacio is one of the most dramatic personages of the Royal Court, his face made of a single piece and exquisitely carved obsidian. The rest of his body follows the same exquisite creation, his arms and legs are carved from chalcedony, and his torso from an unknown number of pieces of tourmaline, jasper, and blue jade. His stony countenance is not obvious once the face is overlooked, as the Lord often deigns to wear a flaring green and gold chased cloak and similarly expensive garments, and is never seen without his silk ascot or kid leather gloves.

Sculpted with grecian precision, aquiline nose and strong chin, many easily forget that he is actually a shell of stone pieces animated by a single aged and potent dunshar. Having existed for more than a century and a half, Lord Pavisfacio moves with an almost feline grace that belies the weight and mass of his claimed stone body. his control is to the point that he is able to ‘decorate’ his shell with clothing as the enboned races are wont to do without tearing the delicate fabrics.

Despite his inhuman nature, Pavisfacio is well spoken and politely mannered. He is one who speaks seldomly, but his magical acumen and his knowledge of relics of stone make him a valued and trusted member of the court.

History/Background
Like all dunshar, Pavisfacio was once little more than a slightly amorphous blob of greenish-blue jelly. He created a crawling husk of cornstalks and mud, then quickly graduated to river stones, which demanded more concentration to control. Eventually he make the great bond, the Herar, to stone, which would become his body material of choice. His first stone bodies were clumsy things, rockpile shamblers and such, It wasn’t until he encountered the Mareb and their stone littered home that he learned how better to form a stone body. Copying their forms, and movement, learning their language he grew, both in size and in intellect. He started as a strange new pet, an oddity, but became an equal in the eyes of the Mareb.

Lord Pavisfacio doesn’t speak of his time among the Mareb, as most humans do not recall the race and he would not betray their remnants to the humans to finish exterminating. Instead he struck out to find out more about the greater world. A prodigy among the dunshar, Pavisfacio found a niche, with his stone body he was able to find ‘work’ among the humans for the gold that seemed important among them. As his Herar was for stone, metal did not impress him much aside from it’s representative value among the enboned races. He worked as a bodyguard, a thug, a custodian, and a slew of other jobs where his durable frame was challenged and tested, increasing his control over it, and dealing with a great variety of humans. All the while he listened, he learned, and as he grew both larger and more wise.

It would not be until his 70th year that someone recognized the intellect that lurked quietly under the resilient facade. Indeed, until his ‘discovery’ most onlookers assumed Pavisfacio to be a golem, either a free-willed wonder, or a sorcerous creation on loan from it’s creator. The local guild of magi took Pavisfacio in as a custodian, an archivist, and student. While he was sensitive to magic, the dunshar was not able to manipulate the aether. He became a valuable commodity to the guild as he was able to handle dangerous objects, cursed items, and other things that proved dangerous or lethal to normal humans or unprotected magi.

The Seven Year Itch
Pavisfacio would have remained content with this lifestyle, handling fascinating magical items, reading stacks of books, and even taking the time to write his own. It was then that he met another dunshar, the fist he had seen in more than half a century. Her name was Yana and her body was made of wood. While he made a plan to woo the dunshar maiden and sweep her off to his lair she found him both terrifying and monstrous. The woman of wood fled, and Pavisfacio was left to consider his life and his actions. Having long been divorced from the rest of the dunshar, he was more human in thought and action. He then realized that the dunshari female was still young and had not made the Herar and chosen her life material. He chided himself, and decided that the time for petty work and fancy was done and it was time to accomplish something.

With his knowledge of the arcane and ability to handle dangerous objects, Pavisfacio was able to find a niche for himself. He disposed of these dangerous items, sometimes at the behest of nobles, sometimes at the request of magi. Each time he earned a favor, a reward, a prize or a payment. After two decades of such hard work, he was no longer a consor to a mage’s guild but rather an unlanded but wealthy converted noble. With such power and wealth as he amassed, he was able to start looking again for Yana, this time better prepared to face her.

Special EquipmentHis Lordship’s Graven Mail - A facsimile of armor, this suit of plate and chain mail is made of gold and other valuable materials. While his physical body, made of stone, needs little protection, many humans have been awed by the display of wealth and most commoners will bow and knuckle their brows rather than speak. Unable to see his face under a gold visor, most assume him to be a regular noble.

His Lordship’s Mace - While he is graceful, the art of swordsmanship has thus far eluded Pavisfacio as sorcery has. While carrying a large mace is not considered very lordly, it is much more acceptable than simply hitting things with stone fists until they die. The mace, like the armor is more a deterrent than an actual weapon as Pavisfacio detests violence in general.

Roleplaying Notes
Pavisfacio is the epitome of a gentleman, holding fast to the rules of etiquette and proper decorum. He generally expects the same of others, which is perfectly normal among the nobles and gentry, but makes him very…stuffy and stodgy to be around in more casual company. He is very intelligent, and well spoken when he deigns to speak. On a personal level he is borderline obsessive-compulsive, which has made him a prodigy for hold form and shape, but makes him rather single-minded to be around. His current list of frustrations includes the inability to properly wield a sword, the inability to articulate his stone face, and the fact that his overtures to Yana have been ignored at best.

Plot HooksGet the to the Archivist - Pavisfacio hires the PCs to locate Yana, at first on recon, and then later to bring her in person to him.

Non-Standard Benefactor - Pavisfacio remains an avid collector of magical items, and is more than willing to hire PCs to find various pieces of loot for him and his plans.

With a Stone Fist - Pavisfacio is granted a domain for his service to the crown. As he turns his single-minded attention to the land, he is a calculating and almost brutally efficient task-master. In addition to the routine hazards of being a landed lord, Pavisfacio is called upon to put down insurrections among the peasantry, bandits on the roads, and at times even possibly called to war. Rather than do these things himself, the dunshar would be more than willing to delegate these tasks to various PCs.

The Cursed Golden Whats-it - The PCs fall under the effects of a cursed item and they are referred to Pavisfacio given his experience with such malignant things. The Lord and Archivist is able to remove the cursed item in quest and the PCs are now in debt to the dunshar.

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I liked the little details, like him being sensitive to magic, but not able to shape it, his little problems with control he might never overcome, but still tries, and how he tries to fit into human society. He will surely have much useful information, that many will try to talk or trick out of him... not last among them the location of very dangerous items. His plight with that girl is also amusing.

An impressive NPC, better than the race itself! This Quest is indeed a good idea.

For whatever reason, my favorite parts were the human adornments he wears just to placate those he lives around. Fine armor and weapons but all for show since his skin itself exceeds their strenght. Thought that was great.